Tag Archives: safepiercing

Post navigation

We received a message, presumably in response to the question we answered the other day:

“There is a place near me as well that does $10 piercings, I’m close with a girl who works there. You have to have money to start out when opening a place right, well the owner had a little more than usual and got good jewelry. But he can do it at $10 because of how wide his clientele ranges. Just thought I should say something because telling everyone it’s low grade when you’ve never personally seen it isnt right.”

We are a successful piercing and tattoo studio that has been open for more than 20 years. While that doesn’t give us first-hand knowledge about the behind-the-scene details of any other studio, it does give us an extensive amount of knowledge, experience and understanding. We have seen a lot of changes in the piercing industry (both good and bad) over our long history. We have seen/heard almost all of the excuses, tricks, scams, smoke-and-mirrors and other shady behavior that people use to try and justify the use of subpar methods/techniques and low-quality, garbage jewelry. Occasionally, someone simply doesn’t know that the jewelry they are using is junk…but most of the time they do…and they continue to put their bottom line before the safety of the people trusting them with their bodies.

Here’s the reality:

With the exception of a few styles of very basic jewelry, a studio can’t purchase high-quality, implant-grade jewelry for less than $10, even if you figure in generous bulk-purchasing discounts, loyalty discounts and professional organization discounts. So, if a studio is using high-quality jewelry, and doing piercings for $10, that can only mean one thing:

They are losing money (or making almost no money) on every piercing they do.

Keep in mind, we are only talking about the cost of the jewelry at this point. We haven’t even included the cost of the supplies that go into doing the piercing (gloves, gauze, needles, skin prep, sterilization supplies etc) and what the piercer has to get paid to do the piercing. If we factor in those things, they are losing even more money.

No business can stay open for very long if they are losing money on almost every sale.

What is much more likely (and we would almost be willing to bet the future of our business on it) is that they are using low-quality jewelry, (in terms of material and/or craftsmanship) and therefore it doesn’t cost very much…allowing them to make money (even if it’s only a little) when they are only charging $10.

It’s great that you know someone who works at the shop, and we certainly understand your desire to believe your friend is correct…but, chances are they aren’t.

Take a minute and try to look at the situation objectively/logically. Which of the scenarios makes the most sense to you and do you honestly think is most likely to be happening? A business owner has chosen to lose money on almost every piercing sale they make….or they are cutting corners and using low-quality jewelry?

The only other possibility is that they are using rings for almost all of their piercings..and if that’s the case, that shows they are utilizing out-dated and inferior techniques and information. A different, but equally-good, reason to avoid a studio that does piercings for such a low price.

We could go into a lot more detail to try and convince you, but this seems like an easier option:

Ask your friend the name of the company/companies where the shop gets the jewelry they use for initial piercings. If she doesn’t answer with one of the following companies, they are not using acceptable-quality jewelry, even if her boss tells her otherwise:

Anatometal (the absolutely best jewelry you can buy)

Industrial Strength

NeoMetal

SM316

Body Vision Los Angeles

Body Circle Designs

Future Primitives

LeRoi

Intrinsic Precision

(it’s possible we missed someone on this list, but we think that pretty much covers it)

We aren’t trying to pass judgement on your friend or the studio she works at. We understand the desire to look for the best in the people that you care about and to want to believe the things they are associated with are positive and on the up-and-up. Unfortunately, that’s just not likely to be the reality of the situation you described to us.

Gallery

Another taste of the large Body Vision Los Angeles order we just received: The Pleades. This piece has been a stand-out since the very first time it arrived in the studio. It is shown here (L to R) in white … Continue reading →

Gallery

The Paloma is still one of our favorite designs from Body Vision Los Angeles. It’s obviously beautiful, but it’s low-profile and the fact that it is available in a couple of different sizes, make it a very versatile piece. Thanks … Continue reading →

Gallery

Courtney’s client came in for a new piece of jewelry for her nostril piercing and picked up this great Dahlia piece. She also decided on a spontaneous daith piercing and picked up this gorgeous Janessca ring. So good! Both pieces … Continue reading →

Gallery

These stunning pieces from body vision los angeles include a Tiara septum ring, a Crown and a Toltec, all of which are crafted from rose gold and feature genuine amethyst gemstones. We spent a long while just staring at these … Continue reading →